Internet Reacts to Mike Pence's NFL Walkout

A tweet from the president seems to confirm it was staged.

On September 8, Vice President Mike Pence said he walked out of an NFL game because he was offended by players #TakingtheKnee to protest police brutality, but not everyone buys his story.

New York magazine reports that Pence flew from Las Vegas to Indianapolis to see the Colts play the 49ers, only to walk out shortly after the national anthem because some of the players knelt in protest of police brutality against black Americans.

"I left today's Colts game because President Trump and I will not dignify any event that disrespects our soldiers, our Flag, or our National Anthem," Pence said in a statement which was posted to Twitter on Sunday, as both a picture and a three-part tweet. "At a time when so many Americans are inspiring our nation with their courage, resolve, and resilience, now, more than ever, we should rally around our Flag and everything that unites us. While everyone is entitled to their own opinions, I don't think it's too much to ask NFL players to respect the Flag and our National Anthem. I stand with PresidentTrump, I stand with our soldiers, and I will always stand for our Flag and our National Anthem."

But some skeptical Twitter users quickly compiled evidence they claim shows the vice president planned the walkout well in advance, suggesting this was a planned PR stunt.

To start, journalist Sung Min Kim posted two screenshots of Pence's tweets, both of which appeared to show the same photograph of the vice president at an NFL game from three years ago.

"This guy can't even fake things well," Kim wrote. The photo, of Pence and his wife, Karen, at a Colts vs. Jaguars game, was first posted in November 2014. The second was apparently reposted on Sunday with the caption "Looking forward to cheering for our @Colts & honoring the great career of #18 Peyton Manning at @LucasOilStadium today. Go Colts!"

"So let me get this straight. Trump and Pence long planned this political stunt that cost American taxpayers millions of dollars?" wrote Eugene Gu, a physician whose photograph of himself taking the knee in solidarity with NFL players went viral. "All those exorbitant private jet fees and the huge security costs of protecting the VP and his entourage in a public stadium? As a stunt?!"

And writer Dani Bostick penned, "Pence spent 250k of taxpayer money for a staged photo op. The president and vice president swore to protect and defend the constitution."

"Planned long enough to edit some photos for sure," tweeted another user, with a link to Pence's two photos.

Others pointed to the the vice president's flight itinerary as evidence of the walkout being staged, since reportedly Pence's press pool were told to wait in vans in case he left early, according to The Washington Post.

Other public figures have also weighed in. Kellyanne Conway, on Monday's Fox & Friends, said accusations of Pence's walkout being a stunt are "truly outrageous, egregious and offensive," according to HuffPost. 49ers player Eric Reid had other thoughts:

"This looks like a PR stunt to me," he said during a press conference. "This is what systemic oppression looks like," he added.

In the past, President Trump has called for a boycott of the NFL in counter-protest of players who kneel during the national anthem. The protest was started last year by former '49ers player Colin Kaepernick to speak out against discrimination against black Americans, specifically in the form of police brutality.

"I'm going to continue to stand with the people that are being oppressed. To me this is something that has to change. When there's significant change and I feel like that flag represents what it's supposed to represent, this country is representing people the way that it's supposed to, I'll stand," he previously said.

If the president and vice president did, in fact, stage this walkout to rile up Trump's base against black Americans, then taxpayers just paid for a very expensive PR stunt. As The Washington Postreports, Pence's trip from the West Coast to Indianapolis and back would have cost more than $250,000.